Zanu-PF politburo member Fortune Chasi has rebuked his party for attacking talented Zimdancehall chanter, Wallace Chirimuko, known to many as Winky D, following the release of his trending new album Eureka Eureka.
Ever since he performed it live on New Year’s Eve, Di Bigman, as Winky is adorably called by music lovers in Zimbabwe, has become a target of amplified attacks by political groupings aligned to the ruling party and several Zanu-PF politicians.
Some accused him of singing politics with the intention of dividing the nation. Others from the ruling party claimed that the musician had been paid by the Americans to tarnish the image of his own country.
But Chasi, for the first time on Friday morning, commented on the issue asking why critics wanted to tell Winky D what to sing.
“Ndiri Ku taura nyaya ya @winkydonline. Why kuda kumu udza zveku imba? Muimbi ha udzike futi ha udzirwe. Song is like a poem. You interpret it the way you like. (I’m talking about the Winky D issue. Why do you want to tell him what to sing. Song is like a poem. You interpret it the way you like),” he said.
Three days after the release of Eureka Eureka, a Zanu-PF shadowy pressure group led by Mike Chimombe, the Economic Empowerment Group (EEG), told journalists in Harare that Winky D’s music has to be banned for being anti-government.
“We note with great concern, the lyrics in Wallace Chirumiko aka Winky D’s recent album launch which is full of derogatory stuff. Musicians should sing songs that build and unite, not to be retrogressive.
“Most of the content is meant to sow seeds of despondency and anarchy to the youth population,” said EEG secretary-general Clifford Hlupeko.
He further stated that Winky D ‘should be very clear if he has traded his artistic jacket with politics’.
Hlupeko said it was clear that the award winning artist is ‘now into politics… because most of the stuff he is singing is political jargon’
“It is clear that the intention is to cause chaos.”
The Zanu-PF official also said they were going to engage the National Arts Council of Zimbabwe in the pursuit of ensuring that Winky D’s music is banned from the airwaves.
“In light of this, the responsible authority which includes NACZ, the censorship board should clear songs before they go public.
“It’s either these bodies are sleeping on duty or not doing their job when we hear such music being played. They should really up their game,” Hlupeko ranted.
